French Citizen Charged with Fraud in Airplane Incident

U.S. Attorney’s Office
April 23, 2013

Eastern District of Pennsylvania(215) 861-8200

PHILADELPHIA—Philippe Jeannard, 61, of La Rochelle, France, is charged by information, filed today, with one count of fraud in connection with an identification document, announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger. According to the information, when Jeannard boarded a commercial airplane on March 20, 2013, at Philadelphia International Airport, he possessed a fraudulent Air France identification card of a former Air France employee and used that fraudulent identification card to gain access to the plane’s cockpit.

If convicted, Jeannard faces a maximum sentence of five years’ imprisonment, a three-year term of supervised release, a $250,000 fine, and a $100 special assessment.

The case was investigated by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations, the FBI, and the Philadelphia Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney K.T. Newton.

An indictment or information is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.